The document outlines the significance of water baptism in Christian faith, detailing its biblical foundations and the spiritual implications for believers. It emphasizes seven key aspects of baptism, such as cleansing, joining the body of Christ, and symbolizing the death and resurrection of Jesus. The importance of invoking the name of Jesus during baptism and its role in entering the new covenant is also highlighted.

1. 12 Foundation Stones of Christian Faith RLBruderick, Jan. 2, 2011 Foundation Stone #4: Water Baptism

2. Hebrews 6:1-3 Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms , the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And God permitting, we will do so. (NIV)

3. 12 Foundation Stones Hebrews 6:1-3 Lesson 06, Foundation Stone #4: Water Baptism Repentance from dead works Faith towards God, especially faith in Jesus Christ – who He is, what He did, and what He plans to do The mighty Law of Faith Water baptism Holy Spirit baptism Baptism of Fire Praying for, Blessing & Appointing church leaders by laying on hands Healing by laying on hands Imparting the Spirit and His Gifts by laying on hands Spiritually dead resurrected Physically dead resurrected Eternal Judgment for absolutely everyone

4. 12 Points of Foundation Stone #4: Water Baptism Repent, believe, and get baptized (“immersed”). Water baptism started with John, Jesus’ cousin. Seven important things happen in water baptism: Baptism cleanses the Bride of Christ. Baptism gives us a clear conscience. Baptism is when we wash our evil hearts. Baptism clothes us with Christ, joining us to His Body. Baptism is the death and burial of our sin nature. Baptism shows that we are reborn just like Jesus was resurrected. Baptism circumcises our heart into the New Covenant. Baptism is done in the name of Jesus Christ because He is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. After repenting and believing, it’s time to get baptized.

5. Q1: After repenting of sins and putting faith in Jesus Christ, what is the next action God expects you to do?

6. Q1: After repenting of sins and putting faith in Jesus Christ, what is the next action God expects you to do? A1: To get water baptized. Jesus commanded that the disciples baptize new believers. Baptism, a Greek word, means to immerse . Mostly, baptism means to dip something under water. It also means to overwhelm , to put an object completely under something. The Bible teaches us that God has 3 baptisms for His children: water, Spirit and fire . R1: Matthew 28:19

7. Matthew 28:19 Therefore, as you go, disciple all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,

8. Q2: When and where did water baptism start?

9. Q2: When and where did water baptism start? A2: Only in the New Testament, some time shortly before Jesus began to minister, John the Baptist started baptizing people for repentance of sins in the Jordan River. He also baptized Jesus, his cousin. R1: H

10. Mat 3:1-17 In those days John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near!" … Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region along the Jordan began flocking to him, being baptized by him in the Jordan River while they confessed their sins. … “I am baptizing you with water as a token of repentance, but the one who is coming after me is stronger than I am, and I am not worthy to carry his sandals. It is he who will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” … Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to stop him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and are you coming to me?" But Jesus answered him, "Let it be this way for now, for this is the proper way for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then John let him. When Jesus had been baptized, he immediately came up out of the water. Suddenly the heavens opened up for him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him. Then a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love. I am pleased with him!"

11. Q3: Why is it so important to put a new believer under water?

12. Q3: Why is it so important to put a new believer under water? A3: Seven important things happen during water baptism, according to the Bible. That’s why the Apostles ordered believers to be water baptized. R1: Acts 2:38, Acts 10:48

13. Act 2:38 Peter answered them, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the Holy Spirit as a gift. Act 10:48 So he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay for several days.

14. Q4: (1) Baptism is for the cleansing of the Church. What does that mean?

15. Q4: (1) Baptism is for the cleansing of the Church. What does that mean? A4: The Church is the Bride of Christ. The Bride is washed pure with water when believers are water baptized. R1: Ephesians 5:22-32, Acts 22:16, I Corinthians 6:11

16. Eph. 5:25-27 Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself for it, so that he might make it holy by cleansing it, washing it with water and the word, and might present the church to himself in all its glory, without a spot or wrinkle or anything of the kind, but holy and without fault. Act 22:16 What are you waiting for now? Get up, be baptized, and have your sins washed away as you call on his name.' 1 Cor. 6:11 That is what some of you were! But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God

17. Q5: (2) Baptism gives a person a clear conscience towards God. What does that mean?

18. Q5: (2) Baptism gives a person a clear conscience towards God. What does that mean? A5: In water baptism we ask God for a clear conscience based on our faith in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. R1: I Peter 3:18-22

19. 1Peter 3:18-22 For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, an innocent person for the guilty, so that he could bring you to God. He was put to death in the sphere of the flesh but was made alive in the sphere of the spirit, in which he went and made a proclamation to those imprisoned spirits who disobeyed long ago in the days of Noah, when God waited patiently while the ark was being built. In it a few, that is, eight persons, were saved by water. Baptism, which is symbolized by that water, now saves you also, not by removing dirt from the body, but by asking God for a clear conscience based on the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone to heaven and is at the right hand of God, where angels, authorities, and powers have been made subject to him.

20. Q6: (3) Baptism symbolizes the blood of Christ which cleanses our hearts of evil. What does that mean?

21. Q6: (3) Baptism symbolizes the blood of Christ which cleanses our hearts of evil. What does that mean? A6: Our hearts are evil, deep in sin from birth. The only way to wash our evil hearts clean is by believing in the power of the sacrificed blood of Jesus, which we do as we are being baptized in water. R1: Hebrews 10:16- 22; 9:13-15

22. Hebrews 10:16-22 "This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts and will write them on their minds," and, "I will never again remember their sins and their lawless deeds." Now where there is forgiveness of these sins, there is no longer any offering for sin. Therefore, my brothers, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh), and since we have a great high priest over the household of God, let us continue to come near with sincere hearts in full assurance of faith, because our hearts have been sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies have been washed with pure water.

23. Hebrews 9:13-15 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are unclean purifies them with physical cleansing, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works so that we may serve the living God! This is why he is the mediator of a new covenant; so that those who are called may receive the eternal inheritance promised them, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the offenses committed under the first covenant.

24. Q7: (4) Baptism joins us to the Body of Christ. What does that mean?

25. Q7: (4) Baptism joins us to the Body of Christ. What does that mean? A7: A person joins the group of believers, Christians, when they put on Christ, which happens during water baptism. R1: Galatians 3:26-29

26. Galatians 3:26-29 For all of you are God's children through faith in Christ Jesus. Indeed, all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. A person is no longer a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a free person, a male or a female, because all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's descendants and heirs according to the promise.

27. Q8: (5) Baptism lets us experience the death and burial of Jesus Christ. What does that mean?

28. Q8: (5) Baptism lets us experience the death and burial of Jesus Christ. What does that mean? A8: Jesus was crucified, died and was buried. We also need to crucify our sin, to die and be buried, but not physically. We need to be baptized, showing our death to sin, and go under the water, showing our being buried. R1: Romans 6:1-12

29. Romans 6:1-11 What should we say, then? Should we go on sinning so that grace may increase? Of course not! How can we who died as far as sin is concerned go on living in it? Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into union with Christ Jesus were baptized into his death ? Therefore, through baptism we were buried with him into his death so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father's glory, we too may live an entirely new life. For if we have become united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old selves were crucified with him so that our sinful bodies might be rendered powerless and we might no longer be slaves to sin. … you too must continually consider yourselves dead as far as sin is concerned, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

30. Q9: (6) Baptism lets us experience resurrection, renewal and rebirth, like Jesus Christ. What does that mean?

31. Q9: (6) Baptism lets us experience resurrection, renewal and rebirth, like Jesus Christ. What does that mean? A9: After 3 days of being dead in the grave, Jesus rose to life. He destroyed the power of death, giving us the hope of eternal life. We symbolize that resurrection, that rebirth, by coming out of the waters of baptism. R1: Colossians 2:8-14; Titus 3:4-6

32. Colossians 2:8-14 See to it that no one enslaves you through philosophy and empty deceit according to human tradition, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of God lives in bodily form. And you have been brought to fullness in him, who is the head of every ruler and authority. In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision performed without human hands by stripping off the corrupt nature in the circumcision performed by Christ. When you were buried with him in baptism , you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. Even when you were dead because of your offenses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with him when he forgave us all of our offenses, having erased the charges that were brought against us with their decrees that were hostile to us. He took those charges away when he nailed them to the cross.

33. Titus 3:4-6 and when the kindness and the love to men of God our Saviour did appear (not by works that are in righteousness that we did but according to His kindness,) He did save us, through a bathing of regeneration , and a renewing of the Holy Spirit, which He poured upon us richly, through Jesus Christ our Saviour,

34. Q10: (7) Baptism is how we enter the New Covenant with the true circumcision. What does that mean?

35. Q10: (7) Baptism is how we enter the New Covenant with the true circumcision. What does that mean? A10: The Old Covenant was finished when Jesus died. The New Covenant was started in His resurrection. The Old Covenant required a sign: circumcision. The New Covenant requires circumcision of the heart, which happens during water baptism. R1: Hebrews 8:6-12; Colossians 2:11-13

36. Hebrews 8:6-13 However, Jesus has now obtained a ministry that is as superior to theirs as the covenant he mediates is founded on better promises. For if the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need to look for a second one. But God found something wrong with his people when he said, "Look! The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors at the time when I took them by the hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt. Because they did not remain loyal to my covenant, I ignored them, declares the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. Never again will everyone teach his neighbor or his brother by saying, 'Know the Lord,' because all of them will know me, from the least important to the most important. For I will be merciful regarding their wrong deeds, and I will never again remember their sins." In speaking of a "new" covenant, he has made the first one obsolete, and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.

37. Colossians 2:11-13 In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision performed without human hands by stripping off the corrupt nature in the circumcision performed by Christ. When you were buried with him in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. Even when you were dead because of your offenses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with him when he forgave us all of our offenses,

38. Q11: What name should be used when doing water baptism?

39. Q11: What name should be used when doing water baptism? A11: Jesus Christ is the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. He said, “When you see me, you see the Father.” He said, “When I go, I will come again as the Comforter”- the Holy Spirit. The apostles and disciples understood and always baptized believers in the name of Jesus Christ, as He commanded them. R1: Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:38; Acts 8:16; Acts 10:48; Acts 19:5; I Cor. 6:11; Col. 3:17

40. Matthew 28:19 Therefore, as you go, disciple all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Act 2:38 Peter answered them, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the Holy Spirit as a gift. Act 8:16 Before this he had not come on any of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Act 10:48 So he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay for several days.

41. Act 19:5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 1 Corinthians 6:11 That is what some of you were! But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

42. Q12: When is the best time for a person to experience water baptism?

43. Q12: When is the best time for a person to experience water baptism? A12: We follow the directions and examples given in the Holy Bible. We have no other authority. In the Bible, believers were always baptized as soon as possible after repenting and believing. R1: Acts 8:35, 16:29-32, 22:16

44. Act 8:35,36 Then Philip opened his mouth and, starting from this Scripture, told him the good news about Jesus. As they were going along the road, they came to some water. The eunuch said, "Look, there's some water. What keeps me from being baptized?" Act 16:29-33 The jailer asked for torches and rushed inside. He was trembling as he knelt in front of Paul and Silas. Then he took them outside and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" They answered, "Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you and your family will be saved." Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and everyone in his home. At that hour of the night he took them and washed their wounds. Then he and his entire family were baptized immediately . Act 22:16 What are you waiting for now? Get up, be baptized, and have your sins washed away as you call on his name.'

45. 12 Foundation Stones Hebrews 6:1-3 Next Lesson: Repentance from dead works Faith towards God, especially faith in Jesus Christ – who He is, what He did, and what He plans to do The mighty Law of Faith Water baptism Holy Spirit baptism Baptism of Fire Praying for, Blessing & Appointing church leaders by laying on hands Healing by laying on hands Imparting the Spirit and His Gifts by laying on hands Spiritually dead resurrected Physically dead resurrected Eternal Judgment for absolutely everyone